Klay Thompson: the Unique, Potent, Still-Developing Piece the Warriors Are Having a Hard Time Parting With

Steve Kerr, the new coach who the Warriors are banking on to get them to the next level, wants to keep Klay Thompson on board.

Jerry West, the legendary NBA figure the Warriors consult for wisdom, also wants to keep Thompson.

Stephen Curry, the star point guard on whom the Warriors’ fate mostly lies, also wants to keep his Splash Brother.

Even with All-NBA forward Kevin Love dangling in front of them, and the potential to join the elite in the Western Conference, a strong contingency in the organization wants to keep Thompson.

Certainly, some are willing to part with Thompson to get a talent like Love. But such a swap comes with a significant level of risk. That’s because Thompson is a unique talent who fits the roster so well that removing him could have multiple ramifications.

The Warriors are at a fork in the road, and it shows in the reported split among management on which direction to take. They can look to improve the roster with a major change, shaking up the core by taking this rare opportunity to acquire an elite player. Or build on the promising core they already have, of which Thompson is integral.

Here is the case for keeping Klay.

* Arguably the most important element of this is Thompson impacts two positions. He is in many ways a perfect fit with Curry. He can defend a wide-range of guards, taking that burden away from Curry. But it’s even more than that.

They get along well. They have two years starting together and have developed a chemistry. Thompson is fine with being behind the camera while the spotlight shines on Curry. They both are gym rats who push each other. And they are growing together as players.

Their relationship is one of the reasons the Warriors have great chemistry.

* Having two players in the backcourt who can shoot it so well gives the Warriors a weapon unduplicated in the league. It’s the first thing teams have to game plan for. It’s what everyone is afraid of. Even when they aren’t making shots, they have an impact because they are constantly on the mind of the defense.

Thompson shot 41.7 percent from 3-point range and 44.4 percent from the field, both career bests. As anyone who watched the Warriors regularly knows, Thompson didn’t make 4 or 5 of every 10 shots. It was more like 8 of 10 one game and 1 of 10 the next.

But as anyone who has watched Thompson knows his inconsistency is not about ability. He has one of the purest strokes in the league.

Thompson’s struggles have been shot selection and diversifying his attack. But his potency is evident as he’s averaging 17.6 points as a starter despite limited ability to penetrate and create his own shot.

As the Spurs just displayed, you can never have enough shooters.

* Thompson doesn’t create offense nearly as well as most elite off guards. But his second year as a starter showed noticeable improvement in his off-the-dribble game. He’s also become a pretty good option in the post. And, for the most part, he got his struggles finishing under control.

Last year, he missed so many layups, Warriors fans started calling they Klayups. This year, he punctuated his improvement in that area by finishing a dribble drive with an emphatic dunk over Clippers forward Glen Davis.

It was a snapshot of what makes Thompson so hard to part with. Finishing is one of several weakness Thompson improved in two years as a starter – along with defense, driving to the basket, and getting to the free throw line (where he was slightly better).

He can be frustrating to watch only because he is occasionally amazing and you want to see it all the time. How good can he be if he became fluid at getting to the basket? What if he ever learned to set up his teammates? What if his postgame develops? It’s tantalizing how good Thompson can be if it ever clicks. In the same way, it’s nerve-racking because you just don’t know what you are giving up.

How much will he be helped by a system that gets him in space and on the move? How will getting postseason experience early in his career help him in the long run?

* In addition to being able to spare Curry by defending other point guards, Thompson’s defense gave the Warriors a special benefit that gets unnoticed.

Thompson is 6-7, 205 and long. He had become adept at using his size and length to harass smaller point guards. He can wear on smaller players.

That’s different than Iguodala, who is a master of angles and percentages. Thompson is a defender you feel, gets into psyche.

That’s not to say they don’t have success against him. But he is something that has to be dealt with.

What other team can throw that at a point guard as a steady diet, without messing up the rotation or taking from the offense? Some teams have such a specialist, but they lose something by using him. The Warriors have that as a starter.

Thompson doesn’t just play both ends, he is a weapon in both. On offense, he scares the crap out of defenses. On defense, he is a weight opposing PGs have to deal with. That’s especially true in the postseason, when he’s defending one guy a whole series.

* Oh, by the way, Thompson has missed one game total his first three seasons. And that was for his grandfather’s funeral in the Bahamas.